From Broken Back to Endurance Running World Record: Kevin Muller

If you want to master the tyranny of the long run, take a few tips from Kevin Muller. In this great interview with Kevin Cassidy in the latest issue of Run 4 Your Life, he talks about everything from his first marathon to endurance mindset, ham & pineapple pizza and a renegade training regime.

He’s a mean competitor but also one of the nicest guys on the Australian, and now world, ultrarunning circuit.

Kevin Cassidy’s profile of Kevin Muller in the latest issue of Run4YourLife magazine

Running For Stroke – Dan Englund in Runner’s World

Was at the newsagent checking out the review of the Conquest in the latest issue of Outside Magazine when I spotted this one in Runner’s World. Dan Englund’s a longtime Hoka user with a big brave back story, and having fought his way back from stroke at a surprisingly young age he’s now clocking up huge mileage and big dollars fundraising for the cause closest to his heart.

Dan Englund profiled for his courage and fundraising work in the February issue of Runners World Australia.

Scott Hawker, chilling in Beijing

Flashing his shorts at -3, Hoka OneOne Australia’s Scott Hawker out for a training run in Beijing, on his way to the Hong Kong 100 later this month.

Just heard from Team Hoka’s Scotty Hawker, freshly back from turning his legs over in Beijing as he gets ready for the Hong Kong 100 later this month.

A little colder here (-3deg) than Australia!! Heading out for a run around the Forbidden City in Beijing.

Got so many smiles and laughs from locals cause I was wearing shorts. Guess that’s the kiwi in me.

Along with The North Face 100 here in Australia in May, Tarawera in New Zealand in March, and a swag of other spectacular ultra marathons throughout the year and around the globe, the HK100 is now part of the Ultra Trail World Tour and as such will see a fast lineup of internationals racing alongside Scott, including Dave Mackey, Claire Price, and Jez Bragg.

Good luck Scott! Great chance to mix it up with some of the best.

 

Bogong2Hotham 2014, the Race Director’s Perspective

This Sunday, January 12th, will see the 28th running of Bogong2Hotham, also known as The Rooftop Run, in the literally breathtaking Victorian Alps. It is also the first year of the race being sponsored by Hoka OneOne Australia.

The fun begins from the foot of Mt. Bogong, a nastily steep mountain in the middle of some of Australia’s best running country. Between the 2km mark and the 8km mark on this 64km course, runners will climb over 1100 metres. And then they’ll still have 56km to go.

Race director Andy Hewat has overcome some serious challenges as an extreme ultrarunner. And he is not only one of Australia’s most respected ultramarathon race directors (or RDs), but he is also one of those handful of adventure-seeking guys & girls who fits the category If They Haven’t Done It, It’s Not Worth Doing.

Here’s a bit of insight into one of Australia’s longest running ultramarathons from the man himself.

And if you haven’t conditioned your quads already, be prepared to leave them out there.

Hoka: Bogong 2 Hotham is a race steeped in tradition. How long have you been RD, how did you come to the position, and what are some interesting historical facts runners might be surprised to learn about B2H?

Andy Hewat: I took over the organising of Bogong for the 2011 event. Which means I actually started in the role mid 2010. I was approached by AURA via then Secretary, Brett Saxon, (actually while I was at Hardrock) to see if I was interested. The race had been left in the lurch by the previous RD who had only just taken over from Mike Grayling who ran it for 10 years prior to that. It was a no-brainer, I had run it 6 times (for 3 finishes) and loved it and couldn’t stand the idea of it not going ahead. It was also an opportunity to return it to its traditional format and cement its place in trailrunning folklore.

Interesting fact? Only three runners have ever broken 7hrs. Stu Gibson ran 6:59 in 2011, Neil Hooper ran 6:58 in 1985, just the second year and Andy Kromar has done it a couple of times. In 1998 he ran 6:58 but in 1996 he set the current course record of 6:41:02. That means the record has stood for 17 years. That same year, Andy also set course records at Cradle and 6 Foot Track. Will we ever see the Bogong course record fall?

A very serious elevation profile.

As a runner, what do you see as the most challenging aspect of B2H, and what strategic advice would you give to first-timers who might not be sure how to best plan their first alpine adventure?

The running evolution that is taking over…

When a particularly large, superlight, and strange looking shoe appeared a few years ago, some thought it was science, others sorcery, but most just plain silly. The shoe outperformed the expectations of most and stale indignation turned slowly to intrigue.

Current models, a comparison

Now, many runners have at least one friend pounding out the miles on trail or road in a pair of Hoka OneOne and even if they don’t, judging from Outdoor Retailer’s latest Gearapallooza, next year they’ll probably know someone running in a Hoka CloneClone.

Hoka One One is a real game changer – which is why so many other brands – even those touting minimal shoes very recently – are now introducing Hoka inspired shoes.   However, it seems as if they are strictly copying the oversize nature of some of the most popular Hoka models – which is only one aspect of the design.  Simply being oversized will not provide the same benefit as Hoka One One shoes.  There is more to the technology than just that.

That’s Jim Van Dine, Hoka’s global Brand President talking to RunBlogRun in a fresh new interview we thought you’d find interesting.

Read more here…

Hoka OneOne Conquest 2014

South Australian runners, Hoka is finally coming to Adelaide.

Gotta love a new running store that appreciates both progress and their customers. Adelaide, get behind The Running Company when they open this week. Let them know what Hoka you need and we’ll be there soon.
Thank you to Chris for seeing the potential here and Sadie, Paul , and Maurice for your active support.

Hoka OneOne 2014: Best in Show

The Hoka OneOne Conquest, due in 2014.

Outdoor Retailer in the US is the gear guru’s Lollapalooza, it’s Christmas for technical material heads, it’s the Big Day Out for mountaineers, adventurers and athletes, without the drifting piles of garbage and retro rock carried past drunk teenagers by strong summer winds.

Basically, Outdoor Retailer is the place to be if you’re into innovation, functional equipment, and want to know what’s going to blow up over the next 12 months.

Guess what? We told you so.